US Government Shutdown

For more than three weeks now, the US Federal government has been on a temporary hiatus, or in other words, a shutdown. The shutdown began when President Trump and the US Congress, which consists of the largely-Republican Senate and the largely-Democratic House of Representatives, were unable to compromise on the 2019 budget. President Trump refused to approve the budget since it did not include funding for the border wall between the US and Mexico. Since the House of Representatives is now majority Democratic, Congress refuses to grant the funding for the wall. The result is the longest government shutdown in US history starting on December 22, 2018, and it has yet to cease.

Many programs funded by the US government have been suspended, including the IRS, NASA, the FDA, the EPA, and multiple other agencies and services. Hundreds of thousands of government employees have been furloughed (suspended without pay). President Trump has addressed the situation and defended his position that the wall is the only way to protect the border. He continued to blame the Democrats in a series of tweets, saying that they “should come back to Washington and work to end the shutdown” and that “Democrats could solve the Shutdown in 15 minutes.”

The shutdown has also impacted the US economy significantly. The shutdown closed many departments, such as the Treasury Department, the State Department, and the Department of Homeland Security. These are some of the biggest departments in the government, and the shutdown equals no pay for hundreds of thousands of workers. Additionally, food inspections are on hold as the FDA is shut down. Many public parks and museums are also closed since the US government no longer funds them.

A poll from CNN shows that Trump currently bears a 39% approval rating among the American public. Many people blame him for the shutdown. The shutdown has affected nearly every American, even students and teachers at AISG. Leo B, a junior at AISG, says that he believes “the Trump administration is at fault” and that “money could be better spent elsewhere.” He went on to say that “if the actual goal was to curb illegal immigration then they should put more money into that, not the wall.” Nick G, another student, remembers that when he lived in Washington DC during the government shutdown, the streets went unplowed. He said that now people’s actual health is in danger due to the shutdown.

Mr. Webster, a teacher from the English department, stated that he thinks the shutdown is “politics run amok” and he believes that “both parties are to blame” in the situation, though he also thinks that Trump and the GOP should take most of the blame. He hopes that both parties will agree to reopen the government and continue discussions of the wall later. Another teacher, Mr. Seiple, said that “the government shutdown is being used as a negotiating tactic,” but the government is not really negotiating as Trump has set a single price, making it more of an ultimatum. Ms. Partee from the Social Studies department compared it to a hostage situation, in which the US citizens are being used to ensure that President Trump gets what he wants. She said that many Republicans are more interested in “party politics” rather than “the health of the country.”

She went on to talk about the economic effects of the shutdown on the United States. She said that for “every week we’re shut down, we lose millions of dollars in potential output.” If the shutdown continues, the US may end up with negative economic growth. She said that even when the government reopens, the confidence of the people will be affected and they will be more inclined to save money since they know that the president can shut the government down at any time. As a result of the destabilized economy, companies will produce less and businesses won’t invest. The lack of production will lead to higher unemployment. Ms. Partee referred to this as “a ripple effect.”

As we near the one-month mark, we must keep in mind that no one person is to blame. Politics is never black or white. In fact, because everybody’s biased, the art of politics tends to be almost all gray area. Republicans blame Democrats and Democrats blame Republicans, but the truth is, there is no point in blaming people. The solution is for the US government to act like a government and look after the interests of their people, not the interests of one person. Perhaps the greatest tragedy of the shutdown is that many people have lost faith in their government. The US government is meant to be the guiding force behind the decisions that make the country better for citizens. They are meant to lead the country but have instead caused a relapse of the United States.